Observe a laboratory activity or base your answer on past visits. How does your CT conduct a typical laboratory activity? How does he or she open the activity and organize student groups? How do students learn what they're expected to do during the period? Reflect on your reading about inquiry and your experience with the NECAP inquiry task. How did the laboratory activity you observe prepare students for the type of activities that might show up on the NECAP in the future? What inquiry elements would you strengthen? What science practices do you want to stress when you're teaching?
Coventry High:
Observation:
Before every class that my CT at Coventry High School instructs, objectives for the day are written on the board for the class to see. This is required by the school system. Students are expected to quiet down once the bell rings and either take out their work in order to have it checked, or to take notes for that day. On this particular day, the first objective on the board was to take out the prelab they were assigned for homework so that they could be checked that they had completed it. Once it was checked that the students had all successfully completed the prelab, they went over it together in order for students to make sure they had all the correct answers. The prelab demonstrates to the students what they are expected to learn throughout the procedure of the lab. Students were dissecting squid in an Anatomy class consisting of seniors. Students are grouped in the beginning of the year and stick with the same lab partners as the year progresses. As the lab progresses the students have a PowerPoint they are following in order to dissect the squid correctly. This lab was an inquiry-based lab, where students learned where the different structures of the squid were located through proper dissecting technique.
Reflection:
This lab is a fun lab to both teach and participate in. I appreciate the fact that my CT uses a prelab as well as a PowerPoint that students can follow as they dissect the squid. The prelab makes sure that the students are well aware of what is expected of them as they are completing the lab. This is something that I will have students complete fully before allowing them to enter the lab and perform the dissection. The lab is lucky to have a computer at every lab bench, which makes it much easier for students to know and understand what they are doing. Students took the pen out of the squid and used the ink sac to write their names on their paper. This adds a little bit of fun to the experiment, as well as practicality, which can be the most important part of school. I remember always looking to find what I can actually use in real life, as opposed to just knowing where the liver is of the squid. As the class progressed, my CT and I went around the room seeing how students were doing and answering questions when asked. This was a fairly high level group of students so there was not a lot of questions that need to be answered, however my CT did ask many questions of them while they were dissecting. This forced the students to be aware and cognitive of what they were doing instead of just going through the motions. Overall, I would pay this lab forward as I think it is both a very informative and interesting lab for students to complete. It shows students that asking questions, and learning through tactile practices can be very beneficial, as opposed to purely reading about a topic. As a teacher I want to stress asking questions, and the fact that no one can possible know what they are doing completely the first time around. Everyone makes mistakes, and if you are doing science correctly, there will be a lot of them.
(2/2) Interesting account of the lab. It is not clear how deeply you've considered what you saw. What did you feel that the students learned about conducting a scientific study based on the lab? One challenge teachers have is balancing "pre-empting" student procedural mistakes while at the same time providing an air of autonomy and critical thinking for students during the lab. How did you CT do this? How will you do this?
Coventry High:
Observation:
Before every class that my CT at Coventry High School instructs, objectives for the day are written on the board for the class to see. This is required by the school system. Students are expected to quiet down once the bell rings and either take out their work in order to have it checked, or to take notes for that day. On this particular day, the first objective on the board was to take out the prelab they were assigned for homework so that they could be checked that they had completed it. Once it was checked that the students had all successfully completed the prelab, they went over it together in order for students to make sure they had all the correct answers. The prelab demonstrates to the students what they are expected to learn throughout the procedure of the lab. Students were dissecting squid in an Anatomy class consisting of seniors. Students are grouped in the beginning of the year and stick with the same lab partners as the year progresses. As the lab progresses the students have a PowerPoint they are following in order to dissect the squid correctly. This lab was an inquiry-based lab, where students learned where the different structures of the squid were located through proper dissecting technique.
Reflection:
This lab is a fun lab to both teach and participate in. I appreciate the fact that my CT uses a prelab as well as a PowerPoint that students can follow as they dissect the squid. The prelab makes sure that the students are well aware of what is expected of them as they are completing the lab. This is something that I will have students complete fully before allowing them to enter the lab and perform the dissection. The lab is lucky to have a computer at every lab bench, which makes it much easier for students to know and understand what they are doing. Students took the pen out of the squid and used the ink sac to write their names on their paper. This adds a little bit of fun to the experiment, as well as practicality, which can be the most important part of school. I remember always looking to find what I can actually use in real life, as opposed to just knowing where the liver is of the squid. As the class progressed, my CT and I went around the room seeing how students were doing and answering questions when asked. This was a fairly high level group of students so there was not a lot of questions that need to be answered, however my CT did ask many questions of them while they were dissecting. This forced the students to be aware and cognitive of what they were doing instead of just going through the motions. Overall, I would pay this lab forward as I think it is both a very informative and interesting lab for students to complete. It shows students that asking questions, and learning through tactile practices can be very beneficial, as opposed to purely reading about a topic. As a teacher I want to stress asking questions, and the fact that no one can possible know what they are doing completely the first time around. Everyone makes mistakes, and if you are doing science correctly, there will be a lot of them.
(2/2) Interesting account of the lab. It is not clear how deeply you've considered what you saw. What did you feel that the students learned about conducting a scientific study based on the lab? One challenge teachers have is balancing "pre-empting" student procedural mistakes while at the same time providing an air of autonomy and critical thinking for students during the lab. How did you CT do this? How will you do this?